At home, I struggled to put my memories from the night before in a perfect sequence, but I had definitely slept with the man named Luca. I wore the marks as proof of our encounter. There was a lot of alcohol that happened too. We were both drinking to forget the night’s events. When the shot had been fired, he had protected me.
He had helped Maddox move people out of the ballroom safely. After Alessio returned, He left the ballroom, a bottle of champagne in each hand. Without knowing why, he had turned to me and invited me to come too. I accepted and went with him and the bottles.
The worst part of the entire night was that even though I had drank more than I needed and was missing parts of the night, the altercation with Marco was still there. I hadn’t forgotten that, or how Demitri, the right hand of Sasha, had stepped in to stop Marco from making a scene.
I was really kicking myself in the ass. There was no way that Marco hadn’t seen me leave with Luca, or all the bottles of alcohol. I was just glad I made it out of the complex without being questioned by anyone. Worst of all, my cousin Maddox. My life was falling apart more now than it had ever been. My marriage to Marco had ended violently and ugly, and he lied. He was not gone. He was definitely still here.
I just wanted him to stay away now.
Pissed about last night’s events, I grabbed a coffee and toast, hoping to offset the pounding in my fucking head. Part of me wondered why I was still even here. It wasn’t like I had anything left to be here for, other than my father’s massive debt. I had taken on when he faltered with the payments. I didn’t want to see my father ended by Maddox or his underboss Alexi. And I didn’t trust Maddox to show my father kindness, when I would even show him kindness, knowing all the details, and he was my father.
I was up to my neck and in Mafia bullshit, and I was ready to just walk away and let my father face his own debt and bullshit he had created. Maddox employed me, but about half of what I made, I paid back into the debt. He paid me well, but it didn’t seem like the debt was moving in the slightest.
Maddox and I had a very strained relationship. I hadn’t been invited to his wedding, nor was I allowed to see his son. I had only met his husband once, and that was by accident.
Drinking the contents of my coffee cup and eating a few bites of coffee made me ill. I tossed the rest of the toast and set the cup in the sink. I hated this. I prayed that Maddox and, by extension, Alexi would leave me the hell alone for a few days. I knew it was unlikely, given all the work I had on my desk. Making my way to my bed, I ripped back the covers, ditching all my clothing, boxers included, and crawled inside.
I left my phone in the kitchen where it could ring off the hook for the next six years for all I cared. I was exhausted, mentally and physically.
Closing my eyes, I pulled a pillow over my head and got comfortable. I was so close to sleep, but my phone was ringing from the kitchen, and I could hear the fucking thing. It went silent, and I was pleased, until it started to go off again. Throwing back the blankets, I stormed from the bedroom to the kitchen of my condo and picked up the phone, not checking the caller.
“Whoever this is, you better have a really fucking good reason you are fucking calling?” I snapped.
“Terrible night?” I heard Alexi ask.
“Alexi Mihail, I could kill you right now.”
“Aw Theo, you’re so sweet this morning.”
“I was trying to sleep.”
“You can sleep when you’re dead.”
“I’m fucking thinking about it.” I hissed, my head pounding.
“Now, now, that’s not healthy.” Alexi said.
“Neither is your addiction to Creed, but I don’t call it like I see it.”
“Watch your mouth, Theo. I might get angry.”
“That wouldn’t surprise me. I’ve been around long enough to know you Mafia men come with one of two packages. Anger issues all around for package one. Or entirely too caring for anyone to understand, for package two.”
“Shut up.”
“Exactly.”
“Listen, you have some paperwork I need you to complete and file quickly. It’s for Alessio’s complex. Then you have the housing papers and we need those by early next week. You can’t start the other project on housing with Luca and Demitri without those papers.”
“Right, I’ll fit those in around where I contemplate ending it all for the big sleep.”
“Theo.”
“Right, no contemplating my life and ending it on company time.”
Alexi sighed and spoke again.
“Take the day off and get some sleep. I can wait for the papers for a day or two. But when I call for them again, you better have them done. Also, Maddox wants you to come to the complex in the next few days. He wants to talk to you about some things.”
“Alright, I’ll fit him in too.”
Alexi didn’t even say bye, he just hung up on me. I stomped back to the bedroom and back into the bed. I took my phone with me, turning it off before setting it on the nightstand and rolling over. Wrapping myself around a pillow, I passed the fuck out.
Opening my eyes, it was starting to get dark outside.
Turning my phone back on, I had missed calls from my dad, Alexi, and Maddox. So much for getting more some sleep. Calling back Maddox, he picked up right away.
“Theo, Are you terribly busy?”
“Not enough to tell you no.” I sighed.
“Good, come to the complex. I want you to look over something for me.”
“Alright, give me a half hour.”
“Sounds good. I’ll see you then.”
I yelled into the silence, wanting to throw my phone, but I resisted. I couldn’t just smash it, because it would be more trouble than it was worth. Ditching the idea of dressing in a suit, I opted for a T-shirt and some sweatpants. I ran my hand through my hair, my curls all over the place. Tucking my wallet, my phone and keys into my pocket, I headed out of my condo.
Down the elevator and to my car. Inside the car, I took a deep breath, and found my will to live for a moment.
Starting the car, I drove to the complex on autopilot. I parked in an available spot and turned off the car, sitting there for a few minutes to compose myself. Getting out of the car, I walked inside. Everything seemed to have returned to normal after last night’s events.
Going up the stairs, Jackson nodded at me politely. I nodded back, heading to Maddox’s office. Knocking on the door, there wasn’t any answer. I turned to leave, to just call him, but he was coming up the hall, his husband and child with him. I cast my eyes down to the floor. It was a habit I had picked up while still married to Marco, fearful that if I treated him like equals, it would spur more violent outburst from him.
“Sorry, Emerson asked me to walk with him and Aries. I figured I had more time before you showed up.”
“I can wait if needed.”
“No, of course not. You are here now.”
The toddler in Maddox’s arms kept yelling hi at me, and finally I looked up. He was cute; he looked just like Maddox, not a hint of his husband in their child at all, even though they were biologically both the parents.
The biggest thing that stood out on the boy was his curly hair. It made me smile slightly before I realized I had been ignoring Maddox and openly looking at his child.
“Sorry.” I muttered. Looking back at the floor.
“Here Em, take Aries. I’ll be home a bit and we can continue this or find something else to do.”
Em gave Maddox a kiss on the cheek and took the toddler with him down the hall. Maddox opened the door and let me inside first. He locked the door behind him and I didn’t like this one bit.
I waited for Maddox to yell at me, but he didn’t. He just sat behind his desk and looked at me. I looked up briefly before looking back down, and that was enough for him to speak.
“What the hell did Marco Di Salvo do to you, Theo?”
I looked up, mildly shocked by his words, trying to figure out how to tell him it was nothing.
“Let me ask you again, Theo. What the hell did he do to you?” This time Maddox’s words were cold and harsh.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I said.
“Then look me in the eye, like you used to. Now you don’t, you avoid looking me or any of the underbosses in the eyes, and you are twitcher than ever. I know I have never given you a reason to be this untrustful of me. There is only one person who can take that blame for this and that’s Marco. Now again, What did he do to you?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t play that with me, Theo. I know fear and trauma when I see it.”
I had to find a way to drop this conversation. I didn’t want to talk about it. It was a sour and bitter flavour in my mouth I would rather avoid.
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